The Worm at the Core: On the Role of Death in Life
- Downloads：8739
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-07-16 09:56:30
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Sheldon Solomon
- ISBN：0141981628
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
Proof of a ground-breaking psychological theory: that the fear of death is the hidden motive behind almost everything we do。
'A joy 。。。 The Worm at the Core asks how humans can learn to live happily while being intelligently aware of our impending doom， how knowledge of death affects the decisions we make every day， and how we can stop fear and anxiety overwhelming us' Charlotte Runcie， Daily Telegraph
'Provocative， lucid and fascinating' Financial Times
'An important， superbly readable and potentially life-changing book 。 。 。 suggests one should confront mortality in order to live an authentic life' Tim Lott， Guardian
'Deep， important， and beautifully written 。。。 utterly original' Daniel Gilbert
'A joy 。。。 The Worm at the Core asks how humans can learn to live happily while being intelligently aware of our impending doom， how knowledge of death affects the decisions we make every day， and how we can stop fear and anxiety overwhelming us' Charlotte Runcie， Daily Telegraph
'Provocative， lucid and fascinating' Financial Times
'An important， superbly readable and potentially life-changing book 。 。 。 suggests one should confront mortality in order to live an authentic life' Tim Lott， Guardian
'Deep， important， and beautifully written 。。。 utterly original' Daniel Gilbert
Reviews
Jayson Brady
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Look， it's a deeply fascinating idea， which is why I was drawn to reading the book。 But the deeper into it I got the less convincing I found it。 Their experiments are just classic social psychology rubbish （that's not to say that all social psychology experiments are rubbish， just that most rubbish psychological research tends to come out of social psychology）。 Their attempt to ground it in the evolutionary narrative lacks foundation。 And their claim that mental illness， just as OCD， is borne ou Look， it's a deeply fascinating idea， which is why I was drawn to reading the book。 But the deeper into it I got the less convincing I found it。 Their experiments are just classic social psychology rubbish （that's not to say that all social psychology experiments are rubbish， just that most rubbish psychological research tends to come out of social psychology）。 Their attempt to ground it in the evolutionary narrative lacks foundation。 And their claim that mental illness， just as OCD， is borne out of terror management is just incorrect。 I still enjoyed reading it， and I really enjoy listening to one of the authors， Sheldon Solomon， talk about the topic on podcasts （his knowledge on philosophy is incredible）， but I found it unconvincing overall。 。。。more
Jovany Agathe
，
Prof。 Solomon， a sage man who truly lives up his surname。
Melancholy Harold
，
Living through acceptance of deathThis is a lucid account of how we deal with our sense of being mortal without being overwhelmed by it。 Based in experimental psychology， the authors summarise years of exploration of our inbuilt defence mechanisms and consider how these influence the decisions we make。
Ian Felton
，
The summary of decades of research on why and how we defend ourselves against the reality of death。 Whether by clinging to cultural symbols such as political identity， religion， and infinite others， we spend much our time protecting ourselves from the reality of our impending oblivion and the ever present uncertainty of when it will happen。 I read this in-tandem with "Total Freedom" by Krishnamurti and found them complementary。 Each deals with illusions and how those illusions keep us from conta The summary of decades of research on why and how we defend ourselves against the reality of death。 Whether by clinging to cultural symbols such as political identity， religion， and infinite others， we spend much our time protecting ourselves from the reality of our impending oblivion and the ever present uncertainty of when it will happen。 I read this in-tandem with "Total Freedom" by Krishnamurti and found them complementary。 Each deals with illusions and how those illusions keep us from contacting reality。 "The Worm at the Core" shows us the myriad ways we distract ourselves because of death terror from a secular perspective which dovetails with Krishnamurti's spiritual perspective。 。。。more
Andres A Pulido
，
Potentially life changing。 Reading this book has contributed to me becoming a more psychologically stable person。 It shakes your core and gives a different lens to see humanity
Robert Bogue
，
What if everything that we did in life was designed to help us avoid the terror of our own death？ What if we could explain everything from a framework that presumes everything we do is driven by an unconscious motive to transcend death？ That’s what The Worm at the Core: On the Role of Death in Life sets out to prove。 Extending the work of Ernest Becker， the authors seek to show us how we work towards ways of transcending the death that we all know comes for us one day。Read more What if everything that we did in life was designed to help us avoid the terror of our own death？ What if we could explain everything from a framework that presumes everything we do is driven by an unconscious motive to transcend death？ That’s what The Worm at the Core: On the Role of Death in Life sets out to prove。 Extending the work of Ernest Becker， the authors seek to show us how we work towards ways of transcending the death that we all know comes for us one day。Read more 。。。more
Nenad Savic
，
Very difficult to review this book - I would have rated it 2，5 stars， but since that’s not an option I will give it 3 stars。While there is an obvious importance to discuss the topic， particularly in a culture where death is suppressed and even expelled from the discourse， the approach to the topic through reductionist and simplistic experimental method with occasional reference to psychoanalysis， anthropology， evolutionary theory seems a bit like an over-eclectic explanation for authors’ experim Very difficult to review this book - I would have rated it 2，5 stars， but since that’s not an option I will give it 3 stars。While there is an obvious importance to discuss the topic， particularly in a culture where death is suppressed and even expelled from the discourse， the approach to the topic through reductionist and simplistic experimental method with occasional reference to psychoanalysis， anthropology， evolutionary theory seems a bit like an over-eclectic explanation for authors’ experimental observations that sometimes seem to be stretched for the mere sake of upholding itself。 Parallel to this， there is an obviously valid hunch that this group of social psychologists have - exploring and relating to mortality and finitude in spite of having this topic expelled from our culture and science， and showing its fundamental existential position that shapes our psychodynamics。This book additionally reminded me that evolutionary explanations are always exciting - as they offer a glimpse of an exhaustive explanation of a phenomenon; but at the same， time they are rather theoretically infertile as they narrow down the horizon of understanding by enforcing telos to complex behaviours， feelings， and perceptions。All in all， this book is at times exciting， but also at times extremely annoying and overly simplistic。 I would still say it is worth the read as it outlines the very special way that we struggle today with the only certainty in our lives - the death。 。。。more
Diana
，
Such a valuable book for our modern times。
Sebastjan Mraz
，
Very rudamentary
Dima Timofeev
，
Self-healing readingThe book reflects a lot on one’s mortality and different historical and modern ways to transcend it symbolically and literally。 I'd recommend it to anyone just to understand yourself better。 Self-healing readingThe book reflects a lot on one’s mortality and different historical and modern ways to transcend it symbolically and literally。 I'd recommend it to anyone just to understand yourself better。 。。。more
Kate
，
Well researched and written。 Fascinating scientific exploration of the effect mortality awareness has on human behavior。 Reads a little dense， slow read for me。 Authors were able to effectively prove how human thoughts of mortality affect every faucet of human existence from evolution， to culture， art， political ideology， sexism， technology even。 In the end I’m relived to be finished。 I sort of thought reading it might somehow quell my existential fears， give me awesome ninja mind tricks。 Instea Well researched and written。 Fascinating scientific exploration of the effect mortality awareness has on human behavior。 Reads a little dense， slow read for me。 Authors were able to effectively prove how human thoughts of mortality affect every faucet of human existence from evolution， to culture， art， political ideology， sexism， technology even。 In the end I’m relived to be finished。 I sort of thought reading it might somehow quell my existential fears， give me awesome ninja mind tricks。 Instead I had to dwell on it for 230 pages and it gave me weird dreams。 。。。more
Matthew Purser
，
The case for their theory is only weakly made and is based on strange conceptualisations of self-esteem and subconscious brain function。 Reductive in ways akin to Freudian sexual drive theory。That being said， parts two and three of the book were enjoyable to read。
Nikki
，
My students， to whom I have confessed my unwavering love for Sheldon Solomon for whose most beautiful mind I would run away from my family for， also know my love for his （and Tom Pyszczynski and Jeff Greenberg's） research。 This book is an accessible-to-all， engaging explanation of TMT， a theory that we all benefit from turning our conscious processing minds on to。 My students， to whom I have confessed my unwavering love for Sheldon Solomon for whose most beautiful mind I would run away from my family for， also know my love for his （and Tom Pyszczynski and Jeff Greenberg's） research。 This book is an accessible-to-all， engaging explanation of TMT， a theory that we all benefit from turning our conscious processing minds on to。 。。。more
Mia S。
，
The authors sounded like such absolute douche bags that it was nigh impossible to focus on the actual information that they were giving。
Tija Bija
，
With this book the authors come up with Terror management theory ， which has been derived from Ernest Becker’s book “The Denial of Death” （1973） 。 These guys took Becker’s philosophical/psychological views to a higher level。 Terror management theory scientifically validates the idea that human culture is thoroughly influenced by death anxiety （conscious and subconscious）。 Consequently the authors come up with new findings， which help to explain the nature of such humanly phenomena as self-estee With this book the authors come up with Terror management theory ， which has been derived from Ernest Becker’s book “The Denial of Death” （1973） 。 These guys took Becker’s philosophical/psychological views to a higher level。 Terror management theory scientifically validates the idea that human culture is thoroughly influenced by death anxiety （conscious and subconscious）。 Consequently the authors come up with new findings， which help to explain the nature of such humanly phenomena as self-esteem， prejudice， and religion through the lense of death anxiety and everlasting human desire for （literal and symbolical） immortality。As I have some doubts of the social experiments， which were described in this book， I still value them as worthy and courageous studies on such disturbing theme that was initially shocking but still unproven， "just" a philosophical idea。Some given examples and comparisons from American culture were not clear for me （for someone with poor knowledge of American history and cultural aspects）。Wish the last Chapter which deepened the thoughts on how can we “learn to live better with death” was longer。 I believe that Terror management theorists have something to say now about the current state of human world。 Somehow I have a disillusioned hope that we are all participants of harmless， planet-size social experiment lead by the chief worm at the core。 。。。more
Vadim Trifonov
，
Somehow adding more "science" into the key premise of "The Denial of Death" didn't make this book more deep。 I feel like something crucial was lost in the process of bringing ideas of "The Denial of Death" to the modern times。 Somehow adding more "science" into the key premise of "The Denial of Death" didn't make this book more deep。 I feel like something crucial was lost in the process of bringing ideas of "The Denial of Death" to the modern times。 。。。more
Sally Boyer
，
I give this book 4。5 out of 5 stars because it didn't solve the problem of death， lol。 Solomon， Greenberg， and Pyszczynski conducted a series of psychological experiments to prove Ernest Becker's theory that subconsciously， the knowledge of our inevitable death， is dictating most of our actions both as a individuals and as a group， for better or worse。 The authors draw on anthropology and psychology to provide examples to back this argument。 The book is an oddly fun read despite the topic。 They I give this book 4。5 out of 5 stars because it didn't solve the problem of death， lol。 Solomon， Greenberg， and Pyszczynski conducted a series of psychological experiments to prove Ernest Becker's theory that subconsciously， the knowledge of our inevitable death， is dictating most of our actions both as a individuals and as a group， for better or worse。 The authors draw on anthropology and psychology to provide examples to back this argument。 The book is an oddly fun read despite the topic。 They maintain a sense of humor throughout and I even laughed out loud a few times。The main idea:"Take all the cultural trappings away and we are all just genetic creatures barraged by a continuous stream of sensations， emotions， and events， buffeted by occasional waves of existential dread， until those experiences abruptly end。" （p37） the solution to this predicament being: "Come to terms with death。 Really grasp that being mortal， while terrifying， can also make our lives sublime by infusing us with courage， compassion， and concern for future generations。 Seek enduring significance through your own combination of meanings and values， social connections， spirituality， personal accomplishments， identifications with nature， and momentary experiences of transcendence。 Promote cultural worldviews that provide such paths while encouraging tolerance of uncertainty and others who harbor different beliefs。" （p225）According to the authors， we use self-esteem to suppress both conscious and subconscious anxiety about death。 Self-esteem can be derived from communal sources， such as religion or nationalism， or from more personal means such as appearance， fitness， money， or fame。 If an individual has experienced disillusionment with any or all of these sources of self-esteem， they often will fall into depression or anxiety as they are less able to fend off the nearly incessant onslaught of death reminders （conscious or not） that we face during this lifetime。 In case you think you don't think about death all that often， think again: "The fact is， your brain gnaws anxiously on the bone of death more often than you think， but the ongoing operation of proximal and distal defenses keeps you from realizing it。" （p174）Existential psychotherapy attempts to help those who are deeply disillusioned and thus in despair， by helping them discover that beyond that "galactic" perspective， "there are virtually always aspects of life that do matter。。。" （p206） and that connection to other humans is probably the most meaningful of all: "Indeed， thinking of loved ones [friends and family] reduces or eliminates the defensive reactions that death reminders typically evoke; and thinking about a close relationship being disrupted or dissolved brings death thoughts closer to consciousness。" （p207）I've been on a friendship exploration kick lately， so I took note of this advice:"The key to forging good relationships that reduce feelings of existential isolation and loneliness is to have the goal of getting to know another person rather than the goal of meeting your own needs。 [。。。] By getting to know someone as a whole person rather than a need fulfiller， you can come to realize that the other person is just as ultimately alone as you are。 But you now have that in common。 Once you accept the limited knowledge you can have of each other， you can then feel close to and love someone， and be loved by them。 Love doesn't eliminate all divides between people， but it allows one to value and be valued， and to feel connected to another person who is in the same existential boat that you are in， thereby minimizing feelings of anxiety and loneliness。" （p208）There are so many more nuggets of insight in this book， but I'll leave them for your to find。 。。。more
Ryan Murdock
，
I liked the first ⅔， but I found the authors grasping a bit once they got to the section on proximal and distal defences against death anxiety。 It seems like a pretty big leap from the studies they're describing。 An attempt to shoehorn absolutely everything in and make it explainable by death anxiety。 I didn't find their arguments convincing from chapter 9 onwards。 I don't understand why a theory has to explain everything， or why it's considered a weakness if it doesn't。 It's helpful to have a m I liked the first ⅔， but I found the authors grasping a bit once they got to the section on proximal and distal defences against death anxiety。 It seems like a pretty big leap from the studies they're describing。 An attempt to shoehorn absolutely everything in and make it explainable by death anxiety。 I didn't find their arguments convincing from chapter 9 onwards。 I don't understand why a theory has to explain everything， or why it's considered a weakness if it doesn't。 It's helpful to have a model that explains certain things， or that offers a useful lens for analyzing an experience， even if it's one of many tools in your toolbox。 。。。more
MelanieLotSeven
，
This book explains so much about human motivation， conscious and unconscious。 I’m surprised that the concepts the authors present are not included in general psych classes。 In my opinion they should be because， as the authors lay out and have extensively tested， death fear motivates people to create coping mechanisms。 Such coping mechanisms include religion， the acquisition of political and/or popular fame， the acquisition of worldly goods， and even the creation of lasting works of art。 Using a This book explains so much about human motivation， conscious and unconscious。 I’m surprised that the concepts the authors present are not included in general psych classes。 In my opinion they should be because， as the authors lay out and have extensively tested， death fear motivates people to create coping mechanisms。 Such coping mechanisms include religion， the acquisition of political and/or popular fame， the acquisition of worldly goods， and even the creation of lasting works of art。 Using a conversational tone， the authors first show us some of the many ways fear of death touches our lives， then posit methods through which we can face the truth of our own mortality with some measure of peace and acceptance。 The book did get a bit bogged down in the three chapters prior to the last chapter。 I felt that perhaps because of the lack of a female voice， the writers missed beats in the chapter about how women’s bodies （especially menstruation， pregnancy， and lactation） may cause subliminal death fear by serving as reminders that humans are animals。 I would have liked to see information about how such connections have been a contributing factor in male dominance of modern political and financial roles。 Overall， though， the message of the book was clear and important。I think this is a vastly underrated book and would recommend it to anyone interested in understanding human motivation。 。。。more
Abderrahman H。
，
The most eye-opening， mind-blowing and fascinating book I have read in years！ Truly one of a kind esp for smb who's interested in the reasons behind why people behave in the way they do。 The most eye-opening， mind-blowing and fascinating book I have read in years！ Truly one of a kind esp for smb who's interested in the reasons behind why people behave in the way they do。 。。。more
C。 Scott
，
Absolutely tremendous。 I first came across Sheldon Solomon in the Michael Moore-produced documentary Planet of the Humans。 The brief two-minute interview with Solomon was my favorite part of the movie and I immediately had to know more about him。Learning about Terror Management Theory has been eye-opening for me。 Solomon， Pyszczynski， and Greenberg are trying to get answers to big， serious questions about human motivations。 I find the idea that fear of death could help explain the origins of rel Absolutely tremendous。 I first came across Sheldon Solomon in the Michael Moore-produced documentary Planet of the Humans。 The brief two-minute interview with Solomon was my favorite part of the movie and I immediately had to know more about him。Learning about Terror Management Theory has been eye-opening for me。 Solomon， Pyszczynski， and Greenberg are trying to get answers to big， serious questions about human motivations。 I find the idea that fear of death could help explain the origins of religion， or war， or patriotism revelatory。 I truly respect how these three have found ways to bring Ernest Becker's ideas to life through creative research。Rarely have I encountered anything that tries to understand the human experience in such a meaningful way。 。。。more
Sam Nunn
，
Ebook。 What to say about this book？ Very interesting theory about conscious and subconscious thoughts of death， and how those thoughts impact how we live。 It definitely got me thinking。 However， I wish the authors had included specific percentages in their sections about the various studies they conducted。 Instead of saying， “X group was more partisan （or xenophobic， etc。） than Y group after being reminded of their mortality”， how about telling us exactly how much more with a specific percentage Ebook。 What to say about this book？ Very interesting theory about conscious and subconscious thoughts of death， and how those thoughts impact how we live。 It definitely got me thinking。 However， I wish the authors had included specific percentages in their sections about the various studies they conducted。 Instead of saying， “X group was more partisan （or xenophobic， etc。） than Y group after being reminded of their mortality”， how about telling us exactly how much more with a specific percentage？ It would have been more convincing。 Or perhaps the numbers really aren’t that convincing？ Just looking for some intellectual honesty here。 Lastly， I constantly found myself doubting the sections and results regarding the subconscious。 But then remembered that it’s not too easy to examine one’s own subconscious。 So I suppose I’ll just have to trust the studies。 I’m glad they focused on “life” in the last couple chapters， because all the talk of “death” was becoming a bit depressing。 :） 。。。more
Bryan
，
Love this book。 Definitely in my top 10 nonfiction books of all time。 I highly recommend it to anyone who is curious about The human condition。 I'm definitely a "hard place"。 Some very interesting studies and a lot of evidence to back up their claims。 Love this book。 Definitely in my top 10 nonfiction books of all time。 I highly recommend it to anyone who is curious about The human condition。 I'm definitely a "hard place"。 Some very interesting studies and a lot of evidence to back up their claims。 。。。more
Leah O'Brien
，
DNF: I was really enjoying this book to better understand some death anxiety I've been dealing with。 The insights in this book really helped me work through some things。 However， I didn't end up finishing it。 I put it down for a while and might pick it back up later on DNF: I was really enjoying this book to better understand some death anxiety I've been dealing with。 The insights in this book really helped me work through some things。 However， I didn't end up finishing it。 I put it down for a while and might pick it back up later on 。。。more
Alex
，
First line: “On a rainy， gray day in December 1973， philosopher Sam Keen， writing for Psychology Today， trundled down the halls of a hospital in Burnaby， British Columbia， to interview a terminally ill cancer patient who doctors said had just days to live。”Last line: “By asking and answering these questions， we can perhaps enhance our own enjoyment of life， enrich the lives of those around us， and have a beneficial impact beyond it。”Favorite line: “Moreover， to avoid self-awareness and the coinc First line: “On a rainy， gray day in December 1973， philosopher Sam Keen， writing for Psychology Today， trundled down the halls of a hospital in Burnaby， British Columbia， to interview a terminally ill cancer patient who doctors said had just days to live。”Last line: “By asking and answering these questions， we can perhaps enhance our own enjoyment of life， enrich the lives of those around us， and have a beneficial impact beyond it。”Favorite line: “Moreover， to avoid self-awareness and the coincident recognition of their finitude， people squander their lives in trivial pursuits， or are obsessed with greedily accumulating money and stuff or blindly lusting for power and honor。 Such insatiable desires， Lucretius contended， make humans prone to unhappiness and profoundly dangerous。” 。。。more
Cezar
，
Nothing new in this book for those who are lucid。 Though， the fundamental questions for each of us - as individuals or as a society at large - are clearly lined on a string of beads。 Worth reading。。
Nikki
，
Best book I’ve read to date。 Everyone struggles with anxieties of mortality and this book illustrates just how we subconsciously combat those fears for better or worse。 Many people create rigid world views to quell the reminders of looming death which causes wars， intolerance， and slandering toward the “others”。 This is the us vs。 them mentality that has been so destructive throughout history。 I’d recommend this book to everyone， whether you constantly struggle with existential worries or are un Best book I’ve read to date。 Everyone struggles with anxieties of mortality and this book illustrates just how we subconsciously combat those fears for better or worse。 Many people create rigid world views to quell the reminders of looming death which causes wars， intolerance， and slandering toward the “others”。 This is the us vs。 them mentality that has been so destructive throughout history。 I’d recommend this book to everyone， whether you constantly struggle with existential worries or are unaware of your biases toward constructing a rigid worldview。 It delves into existential psychotherapy and gives advice on how to build confidence in your ideas and beliefs without thwarting those held by others。 。。。more
Morgane
，
lots of interesting information here， especially around the history of how people have related to （or avoided thinking about） death。 i think at times the authors got a little lost in the weeds and the book got weaker as it went on。 they also have a very， hmm， naive privileged white man way of writing: referring to a sex worker as a "hooker"， criticizing oppressive world leaders but ignoring saying the same of the american ones， etc。 made it hard to take them seriously at times。 but still， it's a lots of interesting information here， especially around the history of how people have related to （or avoided thinking about） death。 i think at times the authors got a little lost in the weeds and the book got weaker as it went on。 they also have a very， hmm， naive privileged white man way of writing: referring to a sex worker as a "hooker"， criticizing oppressive world leaders but ignoring saying the same of the american ones， etc。 made it hard to take them seriously at times。 but still， it's an interesting topic， and we should all contemplate death a little more :） 。。。more
Lucio Mellace
，
The authors of this book make the statement: the role of death has in our lives and the fear of death motivates nearly if not all actions。 The authors go at great lengths to “prove” this however I remain unconvinced。An interesting read and I would recommend it， but only to those who aren’t sensitive to dark/depressing topics。
Coleman
，